Loan Solicitors Must Obtain 'Qualification Certification' to Conduct Business (Comprehensive)

<여신금융협회 교육연수원, 한국금융연수원, 보험연수원
Providing Loan Solicitor Registration Training and Evaluation
Loan Solicitors Must Register to Operate Starting September 25>

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young] Starting from September 25, in accordance with the enforcement of the Financial Consumer Protection Act, loan solicitors will be required to register with the Financial Supervisory Service and each financial sector association in order to conduct business. Ahead of the full-scale registration application next month, registration education and evaluation processes for qualification certification have also been established.

According to the Credit Finance Association on the 25th, the Credit Finance Association Training Institute, together with the Korea Financial Training Institute and the Insurance Training Institute, has decided to provide registration education for those seeking to register as sales agents or brokers of loan-type products under the Financial Consumer Protection Act. The Credit Finance Association Training Institute will also conduct evaluations (group exams) for those who have completed the new registration education course.

This education and evaluation are legally mandated qualification processes for loan solicitors to operate. According to the Financial Consumer Protection Act, which came into effect in March, loan solicitors must meet the requirements and apply for registration with the Financial Supervisory Service and each financial sector association starting next month. From September 25, only those who have completed such education and evaluation and have been registered will be allowed to conduct business.

Registration education and evaluation will be conducted separately for experienced individuals who have worked in existing financial companies or loan solicitation tasks and for newcomers. Experienced individuals are those who have worked for three or more years in direct sales of financial products involving loan-type products or who were registered with associations within five years before March 25 of this year; they only need to complete the registration education. On the other hand, newcomers who wish to engage as sales agents or brokers for the first time must pass the evaluation exam after completing the registration education.

Registration education can be applied for online at each educational institution starting from the 28th. The courses are offered in two categories: general loan products and lease/installment products, and those handling all loan-type products must complete both courses. The education duration is 24 hours each for experienced individuals and 48 hours each for newcomers. Upon completion, a certificate of completion will be issued. The evaluation exam can be applied for at the Credit Finance Association Training Institute starting August 6, with the first exam scheduled for August 7.

Since new qualification standards for loan solicitors have been established and they are now legally regulated and supervised, it is expected that it will take some time for the system to settle. At least 50,000 people will need to undergo education and registration procedures to continue their business in the future. As of the end of last year, there were about 15,000 general loan product solicitors across all sectors. For lease/installment solicitors such as car dealers, the Credit Finance Association estimated the demand for preliminary education at about 40,000. Considering not only existing loan solicitors but also new entrants, this number may increase.

An industry official said, "Since the enforcement of the Financial Consumer Protection Act in March, we have carefully prepared during the six-month grace period to minimize confusion," adding, "Financial authorities and each financial association are holding briefing sessions and making efforts for the swift establishment of the system."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.